If there is another May 13 riot, the MALAYS WILL BE THE BIGGEST LOSERS.....
As the countdown to the general election begins in earnest, we
are getting more and more calls from desperate and irresponsible
politicians drawing attention to the possibility of a repeat of the
infamous May 13 violence if the election results should go against the
expectations of various political parties and interests.
The fact that these calls
are directed towards the Bumiputera component of our population, are
expressed in the national language, and are widely carried in the Malay
mass media and Internet world makes me suspicious of the intentions of
these politicians who claim that they are simply doing Malaysians a
favour by warning of the backlash should the election outcome not bring
about a continuation of the present power structure.
The
latest invocation of May 13 took place at the Umno general assembly
held recently. In that meeting, the Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat Abdul
Jalil warned that the May 13 tragedy might be repeated should Umno
became weak and not be able to overcome its challenges. That this
warning was not made obliquely but was served up as part of her opening
speech text testifies to the way in which this kind of desperado
thinking has become the mainstream in certain political circles.
The fact that these calls
are directed towards the Bumiputera component of our population, are
expressed in the national language, and are widely carried in the Malay
mass media and Internet world makes me suspicious of the intentions of
these politicians who claim that they are simply doing Malaysians a
favour by warning of the backlash should the election outcome not bring
about a continuation of the present power structure.
To my mind, these
politicians are not only applying crude pressure on the Malay electorate
to vote for them but they are also blatantly revealing their trump
card – that violence, chaos and political instability will
automatically erupt in the event that the opposition parties win the
elections.
This blackmailing of our
electorate as well as incitement of disruptive and hooligan elements in
our society is totally unacceptable. Various academicians and
politicians from the opposition have spoken up against such fear
mongering in the recent past. However, not enough has been done by
members of the business community and other professional organizations
to speak out against these warnings and threats although they will be
the main losers should another May 13 episode take place.
Much more needs to be done
by key stakeholders to condemn the individuals and organizations
making the threats as the risk of these threats becoming
self-fulfilling prophesies increases by the day.
Shahrizat’s not-so-veiled threat
The
latest invocation of May 13 took place at the Umno general assembly
held recently. In that meeting, the Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat Abdul
Jalil warned that the May 13 tragedy might be repeated should Umno
became weak and not be able to overcome its challenges. That this
warning was not made obliquely but was served up as part of her opening
speech text testifies to the way in which this kind of desperado
thinking has become the mainstream in certain political circles.
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